Bai Ling

Bai Ling, whose name translates into English as "White Spirit" was born in China on October 10, 1970. Bai has described herself as a very shy child who found that she best expressed herself through acting and performing. She has said that acting allows one to ignore how society tells one to behave and allows other parts within oneself to be expressed. She managed to pass the People's Liberation Army's exams, and became an "artist soldier" at Linzhi, Tibet. Her main activity there was entertaining in the musical theater. She also served shortly as an Army nurse. After the end of her hitch with the Army, Ling joined a theater group in Beijing, where she appeared in traditional Chinese plays as well as dramas from the West.

At age 21, Bai Ling traveled to New York City to study at New York University's Department of Film and took classes at the Strasberg Institute. She make her American film debut as the villainous Myca in the dark fantasy The Crow. Later, she obtained a special visa that allowed her to remain in the United States until she became a citizen in 1999. Later in 2005 Bai was a castmate of the VH1 program called But Can They Sing?. The show gave several non-singer celebrities an attempt at singing on every episode and then allowed the audience and home viewers to vote off one contestant each week.

Bai Ling was most famous for her risqué and raunchy get-ups and her performances of Madonna's "Like a Virgin" and The Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated". Bai was eliminated just before the grand finale but was invited back on the final week for a special performance of Divinyls' "I Touch Myself". She has appeared in the show Lost as part of Jack's flashbacks. Her character, Achara, has predictive powers, and is the artist of Jack's tattoo reading "He walks amongst us, but he is not one of us." Achara attests to predicting Jack's leadership role on the island.

In 1999 she appeared in Wild Wild West and Anna and the King. She's also been seen in The Beautiful Country (2004), My Baby's Daddy (2004), and Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004). Bai Ling had a small role as a senator in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005), but was cut during editing. Bai Ling claimed that this was because of her posing for the June 2005 issue of Playboy magazine, but director George Lucas denied it. She will also appear in Man About Town (2005), starring Ben Affleck.

Bai Ling Trivia

• "But somehow I feel like still it's a gift, and I wonder, how can I give this gift to others? Just work hard, and do whatever I can do, to be that, and to return the love to the fans. I like to give them joy and smiles to them. Give back to them. " - Bai Ling
• 5' 3" (1.60 m)
• Was named one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World in 1998 by People magazine.
• Dating singer Chris Isaak.
• Cut off most of her waist-length hair for role in "Anna and the King".
• Lives in Marina Del Rey, CA.